- El Salvador acquired 5 more Bitcoin on March 10, 2025.
- The country’s Bitcoin treasury now holds over 6,111 BTC.
- El Salvador recently agreed to stop its Bitcoin purchases to secure a $1.4 billion loan from the IMF.
On March 10, 2025, El Salvador added 5 more bitcoins to its strategic reserve, bringing the total to 6,111 BTC. This move comes amidst pressure from IMF to where El Salvador agreed to rescind the status of Bitcoin as a legal tender in the country and scale back its Bitcoin purchases.
El Salvador has been making headlines by continuing to increase its Bitcoin reserves despite pressures from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to scale back its cryptocurrency initiatives.
El Salvador Boosts Bitcoin Reserve Defying the IMF Deal
In December 2024, El Salvador secured a $1.4 billion loan from the IMF. The deal was finalized on February 26, 2025, after agreeing to modify its Bitcoin policies. The deal required the nation to make Bitcoin acceptance voluntary for private businesses, restrict public sector involvement in Bitcoin-related activities, and ensure taxes are paid solely in U.S. dollars.
The IMF also stipulated that the government should not accumulate additional Bitcoin at the public sector level, a condition aimed at mitigating perceived financial risks. Additionally, the government is expected to phase out its Chivo wallet, a state-backed digital wallet launched in 2021 to promote Bitcoin use, and enhance transparency and regulation of digital assets.
Despite these concessions, El Salvador has continued to bolster its Bitcoin holdings. The National Bitcoin Office recently reported purchases such as 11 Bitcoin on January 19, 2025, for over $1 million, followed by another Bitcoin the next day, bringing its total reserve to 6,044 BTC—valued at over $617 million at the time.
More recently, between late February and early March 2025, the country added at least 12 more Bitcoin, pushing its holdings above 6,102 coins, worth approximately $550 million. These purchases appear to align with President Nayib Bukele’s vision of maintaining Bitcoin as a strategic reserve, a policy he has championed since El Salvador became the first nation to adopt it as legal tender in September 2021.
Wht is IMF not doing anything?
The IMF has acknowledged that El Salvador’s recent Bitcoin acquisitions are “consistent with agreed program conditionality,” suggesting some flexibility in how the restrictions are interpreted.
This could imply that the government is managing its reserves through mechanisms not considered “accumulation” under the IMF’s terms, such as reclassifying existing assets or using non-public sector entities. However, the IMF’s stance remains firm: by December 2025, El Salvador must fully comply with halting public sector Bitcoin purchases and mining, liquidate its Fidebitcoin trust fund, and provide audited financial statements for Chivo.
El Salvador’s persistence in expanding its Bitcoin reserve—now valued at significant profits, with estimates of $179 million as of January 2025—highlights a broader strategy.
Bukele has emphasized that these holdings are a long-term investment, not intended for short-term spending, and has pointed to benefits like increased tourism and international attention.
Bitcoin’s price surge, peaking above $109,000 in January 2025, has bolstered this approach, aligning with global trends of cryptocurrency enthusiasm, partly fueled by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s pro-crypto rhetoric.
Yet, domestic adoption remains a challenge. Surveys, such as one from January 2025 by Universidad Centroamericana, indicate that 92% of Salvadorans did not use Bitcoin in 2024, suggesting the policy’s impact is more symbolic and strategic than practical for everyday transactions. Critics argue that the IMF deal reins in El Salvador’s crypto ambitions, while supporters see it as a pragmatic compromise that preserves Bitcoin’s legal tender status while unlocking up to $3.5 billion in multilateral funding.
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